Watch: Keir Starmer unveils Labour’s plan to cut NHS waiting times with millions of new appointments

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Watch as Sir Keir Starmer unveiled Labour’s plan to cut NHS waiting times in a major speech on Monday (6 January).

The prime minister promised millions of extra NHS appointments in a bid to slash waiting times for treatment to 18 weeks by the next general election.

With pressure growing on the prime minister to deliver on his general election promises, he set out a so-called elective reform plan aimed at taking millions of patients off waiting lists and tackling backlogs in hospitals.

Delivering his major speech, Sir Keir set out how ballooning NHS backlogs have “left millions of patients languishing on waiting lists, often in pain or fear”.

The plan will increase the use of community diagnostic centres, letting patients access care such as scans, tests, and checks closer to home. It will also roll out a wave of new surgical hubs in a bid to help protect planned procedures from being impacted by seasonal and other pressures on the NHS.

It is part of Labour’s manifesto commitment to create 2 million additional appointments in its first year in power – the equivalent of 40,000 every week.